Far West

Victorville, Calif. officials have rejected a compensation claim by bond underwriter Kinsell, Newcomb & De Dios for the costs of investigations into the city's finances and bond transactions.

West Coast nonprofit hospital chain Dignity Health, formerly Catholic Healthcare West, was downgraded ahead of plans to sell up to $500 million in taxable bonds.

California Gov. Jerry Brown's recent vetoes of bills designed to reintroduce tax-increment financing will likely postpone, rather than kill, the return of some form of redevelopment.

A Nevada panel recommended raising Nevada's unemployment tax rate to help repay money the state borrowed from the federal government to pay benefits.

California's state school superintendent, Tom Torlakson, appointed Kent Taylor to run the insolvent Inglewood Unified School District.

Standard & Poor's downgraded Fullerton, Calif. as the city fights with the state over which redevelopment obligations the city must cover.

A judge ruled in favor of Oakland in its pursuit of alleged overpayments to retirees in a long-closed police and fire pension fund.

Standard & Poor's placed three series of BB-rated Hercules Public Finance Authority bonds on watch for a potential downgrade.

The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of Municipal Securities began reporting to SEC chairman Mary Schapiro as of Sept. 24, an attorney in the muni office said Thursday.

JPMorgan Chase agreed to mentor San Diego-based broker dealer Academy Securities, a certified disabled veteran business enterprise with a municipal bond market presence.